Course-controlling attachment for knitting machines



"a Imam? P 259 192?" A. WAGNER COURSE CONTROLLING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 22, 1.923 a Sheets-Sheet 1 BY N VA ATTORNEY April 26, 1927. 7. 1,626,017

A. WAGNER QOURSE CONTROLLING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 22, 1923 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR w lfiZGfii? Apmi 26, 31927. A. WAGNER COURSE CONTROLLING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 22, 1923 3 Sheets--Sheet3 I l INVENTOR I BY I ATTOR Iii L5 Patented Apr. 26, 1927.

UNITED STATES 1,626,017 PATENT OFFICE. v

ALFRED WAGNER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO GOTHAM SILK HOSIEBY COMPANY, INC., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ACOBPORATION OF NEW YORK- (lQUBSE-CONTROLLING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES.

Application filed Decdmber 22, 1923. Serial No. 882,137.

This invention relates to improvements in a course controlling attachment for knitting machines designed to operate automatically to control the number 'Of courses to be knitted and to permit variation in the stitching of successive courses.

The object of the invention is to provide a course controlling attachment for knitting machines which is simple in construction,

, capable of being readily and easily applied to knitting machines of common construc tion, and which is efiici'ent in operation, for controlling the number 'of courses to be knitted in a knitted article of apparel for any desired character of stitching.

A further object of the invention is to provide an attachment of the character referred to for automatically arresting the operation of a knitting machine when a desired length of 'a knitted article has been completed.

Further objects of the invention will. appear more fully hereinafter.

The invention'consists substantially in the construction, combination, location and relative arrangementof parts all as will be more fully hereinafter set forth, as shown in the accompanying drawings and finally pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings,

Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation of a' portion of a knitting machine showing the ap' plication thereto of an automatic course controlling attachment embodying the principles of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a view in top plan of the construction shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a broken detail view in vertical transverse section entire line 2-2, Fig. '1, looking in the direction of the arrows. E

Fig. 4 is a broken detail view in side elevation parts'in section on the line 44, Fig.

2, looking in the direction of the arrows and showing a portion of thecourse controlling attachment in elevation.

Fig. 5 is a broken detail'view in top plan showing the connections of the attachment and its associated parts for efi'ecting the actuation of the machine arresting member.

Fig. 6 is a detached broken detail view showing the manner of automatically actuating the attachment.

Fig. 7 is a broken detail view in vertical section on the line 7-7 Fig. 5, looking in the direction of the arrows.

The same part is designated by the same reference numeral wherever it occurs throughout the several views.

In the manufacture of knitted articles of wearing apparel of various kinds, it is a common practiceto knit a given length of.

the article with one kind or characteristic of stitch and then for another or succeeding section or portion of the length of the knitted article to emplo a stitch of a different characteristic, an so on until the entire length of the knitted article 'is completed. Heretofore, so far as I am'aware, the universal practice has been to continue the knitting of the article with a given kind or characteristic of stitch until the desired length of the course is attained, and for the operator of the knitting machine to determine solely by his eye and his experience when the desired length or course is comwell-known manner, so as to produce the next course of stitching in the length of the article in a different character or kind of stitching, the operator again determining by his eye or experience when to arrest the knitting operation, i. e., when the desired length of course of the knitting with the varied style of stitching has been attained.

This universal custom and practice has resulted in the production of completed'knitted articles'which vary from .each other in the lengths of correspondin courses of like character of stitching. his defect results from dependence being placed on the human element involved in an operator determining by ins ction when to effect an arrest of the mac ine in order to permita change being made in the character of the stitching to be employed. In other words, in the production of successive articles which are desired to have uniform lengths of courses of the same character of stitching, the uniformity in such lengths or courses is not attained.

It is among thespecial purposes of my present invention to provide an attachment for knitting machines which controls automatically the point at which the machine is arrested to permit a change in the character of knitting to be made, thereby relieving the operator of the duty of effecting such arrest according to his own judgment, where by in the use of the attachment, presently lllt) to be described, the arrest o the machine is made automatically at the same point in the length of the course of stitches for each Bil succeeding article knitted on the machine, with the result that knitted articles of uniform length are produced each having successive courses of uniform length but of relatively varying characters or styles of stitch in carrying out my invention, I propose to employ a travelin member driven from the main power shalt of the knitting machine through t-he usual or any ordinary or desired arrangement of gearing, and which corresponds in length of its act'on to a complete cycle of operation of the knittin ma.- chine required to. produce a completed idea of knitted apparel. For example, if the knitted article to be produced is a stocking, then this movable member is of such length as to complete one cycle of operation during the knitting operations required to complete one stocking, and I provide means associated with the traveling member referred to which, at predetermined intervals in the complete cycle of operation thereof, and corresponding to successive courses to be produced in the knitted articles, orient the automatic arrest of the machine so as to permit the necessary alterations and changes in the well-known manner of the knittin devices to vary the character or style or the knitting employed in producing the next succeeding course in the knitted article.

In the accompanyin drawings, I have shown one structureo? course controlling attachment embodying my invention wherein the movable member referred to is shown 4 in this instance as an endless chain device 8. in practice, I employ for this purpose the usual narrowing chain forming part of the usual knit-ting apparatus, it being understood that this chain completes one cycle of its operation during the period the knitting machine is produced a. completed knitted article. Where knitted articles of diderent lengths are produced on the same knitting machine, the narrowing chain 8 is replaced by other chains respectively, correspnding in length or cycle of operation to the length of the particular article to be produced;

In accordance with my invention, ll propose to mount upon or secure to the chain 8 at suitable spaced apart intervals the blocks or stop buttons 9, which, in the case of the chain device 8 are in the form of an endless chain operating over sprockets, as indicated at 10, which is the usual arrangement in knitting machines, Theseblocks or stop buttons are brought predetermined intervals of time in engagement with a rock arm 11 pivotally mounted as at 12 upon a fixed bracket or stand 13 suitably mounted upon a convenient art of the frame work oi the knittingmachme, such, for example, as

19 and link 20 with the lower end of a lever 21 pivotally mounted at its upper end upon a stud indicated at 22 carried by the short arm 28 of a bell crank lever 24, said bell crank lever being pivotally mounted at its angle on a stud 25 tapped into a bracket 26 or a portion 27 of the frame work of the machine. The free end of the long arm of the bell crank lever 24 is connected .as indicated at 28 with a longitudinally and vertically'movable bar 22 which, at its upper end, is formed with a beveled or cam surface 30 (see Fig. 1), arranged to operate against a roller 31 having an axial. pin 32, one end of which engages the member 33 which constitutes the stop bar for arresting the operation of a knitting machine. -The roller or stud 31 is held and guided by means of abracket 34: suitably fastened to a convenient part 35 of. the frame work of the machine, the pin 32 carrying the abutment 31 working freely in a slot 35 formed in said bracket,

Mounted upon a shaft 36 driven from the main power shaft of the machine is a member consisting of a disc portion 37 and a cam portion 38. The disc portion 37 is provided with a'cylindrical rim surface, while the peripheral surface of the cam portion is provided with a cam projection 38 thereon (see Fig, 3). Carried b the arm 21 near its lower end are-lateral y projecting pins 39, i0. Pin 39 rides against the cylindrical peripheral surface of the member 37 while the arm 21 is normally maintained in position. for the pin 40 to be retained out ofv peripheral contact with the cam member 38. When, however, the member 21 is rocked by the engagement of the arm 11 with lever 16, as above explained, the lever 21 is rocked or swung upon its fulcrum pin 22 in a direction to project the pin 40 into the path of the cam surface 38 so that when said cam is rotated said lever 21 is rocked lull thereby, rocking the bell crank lever 24- upon Y its fulcrum 25 in a direction to project the bar 29 upwardly, thereby bringing the cam surface 30 at the upper end of said bar into contact with the abutment 31., thereby causing the stop member 33 to be shifted endwise to ei fect, in the well-known manner,

the arrest oi the operation of the machine The shift oi the stop member 33 in the maimer described is against the action of the usual spring contained in a casing ll and connected by a link 4,2 with said memher can) return or restore said stop member to its initial position when the machine is again startedand the parts restored to their normal positions.

The operation of the apparatus is exceedingly simple and is entirely automatic in etfecting at the proper and predetermined intervals the arrest of the operation of the knitting machine. The machine is put in operation in the usual .and ordinary manner again put into 0 eration and a second course o stitching of t e changed variety is added to the'length of the article being produced.

When the desired length of such new course of stitching is attained, as predetermined by the spacing apart of the stop buttons 9 on traveling member 8, another .stop button is brought into position to operate the arm 11 thereby again shifting the stop member 33 and arresting the machine to permit another shift or change in the knitting devices to produce a difi'erent character of stitch. This operation continues throughout an entire cycle of action of the machine corresponding to the length of operation of the traveling member 8. Consequently, each succeeding completed article turned out by the machine is not only of uniform length but the various successive courses of stitching of relatively different cha-racteristics'are all absolutely uniform in length of the courses and relation of the successive courses without depending upon the mere skill or attention of the operator to gauge the lengthsor extent of said courses.

While I have shown and described in detailone structure of automatic course controlling attachment for knitting machines as an illustrative practical embodiment of my invention, and one which I have found efiicient. in extensive use, I do not desire to be limited or restricted to the exact details of structure thereof as' shown and described but what I doclaim as new. and useful and of my-own invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a knitting machine, an arresting bar and a narrowing chain, in combination with means actuated by the narrowing chain to operate the arresting bar, said means including a shiftin bar, an abutment carried b thearresting r to be engaged by said -s lifting bar, a .bell cranklever for actuating the shifting bar, and means actuated by the narrowing chain to operate the bell crank lever.

2. In aknitting machine, an arresting bar and a narrowing chain, in combination with means actuated by the narrowing chain to.

operate the arrest-ing bar said means including a shiftingbar, anabutment carried by the arresting bar to be engaged by said shifting bar, a bell crank lever for actuating the shifting bar, a cam' driven by the machine, and means actuated conjointly by the narrowing chain and the cam for operating the bell crank lever.

3. In a knitting machine, an arresting bar and a narrowing chain, in combination with means actuated by the narrowing chain to operate the arresting bar, said means in cluding a stop on the narrowing chain, a rock arm arranged to be engaged by said stop, a lever engaged by said rock arm, a swinging rock lever operated by said first mentioned lever, a pin, carried by the swing ing rock lever, a cam to engage said pin, a bell crank actuated by said swinging rock lever, a bar actuated by the bell crank, and an abutment carried by the arresting bar arranged to be. engaged by said bell crank actuated bar.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my handon this 15th day of December A.

ALFRED WAGNER. 

